Friday, January 10, 2025

Wabanaki Paddles at the Maine Maritime Museum

Here are four paddles in the collections of the Maine Maritime Museum. They have been grouped together because of their Penobscot / Wabanaki influences.

Canoe Paddles
Catalog Numbers: 2007.024.1 - .4
Descriptions:
1 - Penobscot Indian paddle (70" long)
2 - paddle manufactured by E. M. White, in Penobscot style (69" long)
3 - Wabanaki paddle, probably Penobscot, with wide blade (74" long)
4 - Wabanaki paddle with scalloped edges, possibly Passamaquoddy or Maliseet (69" long) 



Friday, January 3, 2025

Tom Penniston's paddle acquisition: Rare decorated Mi'kmaw paddle

Some of the paddles in the private collection of Tom Penniston have been featured on the site. Tom was fortunate to recently acquire another spectacular pieces and has graciously allowed posting pics and details. This one has etched decoration on both sides of the handle but ink/dye drawings on one side of the blade. Dr. Roger J. Lewis, Curator of Mi’kmaq Cultural Heritage at the Nova Scotia Museum, has confirmed the paddle's origins as "definitely Mi’kmaq".

 
Decorated Mi’kmaq paddle


The grip also has a relatively unique style of roll grip that protrudes on one side but is flat on the other.
  
Etched decorations on grip



Ink artwork on blade


The non decorated side of the blade features an inscription with the first two lines reading:
"Made in gravel Pit yarmouth co ns"
" Mrs. L. Luxey made"

Gravel Pit Reserve was situated within Yarmouth county in southern Nova Scotia with the territory now forming part of Acadia First Nation. According to  Dr. Lewis, the Mrs. L. Luxey referred to in the inscription may be Mary "Lucy" Luxey (1855-1938) wife of Louis Luxey, chief of the Reserve. Unfortunately there is no date inscribed on the paddle  but if indeed it as was made by Mrs. Luxey as the inscription infers, it may one of the very few known examples carved by a female carver. 

Further proof of the Mi'kmaq  origin may be in the last line of the inscribed text. The first two words might be read as "al nu". Although the term Mi'kmaq is predominantly used by the tribal group today, another term used to refer to themselves in their own language was  "al nu" or sometimes phonetically written as "el nu". Much later in the mid-20th century the rules for writing were formalized and today the term is written as Lnu  or L' nu meaning "the people". Today, some of the reserves have the word Lnu in the name of the territory. As of yet, the rest of the phrase hasn't been translated. 




Monday, December 2, 2024

Rare Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) paddles linked to Chestnut Canoe Company

Waddington's is currently hosting an online auction of Historic First Nations Art closing on December 5, 2024 at 2pm EST. Included in the collection are three stunning canoe paddles with an impressive provenance. Lot 14 is a pair of Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) paddles featuring extensive double curved etchings on the blades. 

Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) Paddles
60.5 x 5.75 x 1 in — 153.7 x 14.6 x 1.9 cm
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto


Although one of the paddles has some damage along the exterior edge, the blades are not cracked and intricate etching motifs are wonderfully executed by a skilful hand. Existing paddles with these elaborate double curved motifs are indeed very rare with just a few scattered in museum collections around the world. 
Lot 14  - Closeup of blades
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto


The elongated handles with graceful scalloped edges are marked with an inscription, "Ida" and are etched with the dates 1898 and 1899 on the reverse sides. 

Lot 14 - Scalloped grips with inscription
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto

The paddles belonged to William T. Chestnut and his wife Ida and hung in the Chestnut family cottage at Robertson's Point on Grande Lake, Jemseg NB. William was of course one of the brothers responsible for the establishment of the famed Chestnut Canoe Company and was an avid outdoorsman and canoeist well before the establishment of the canoe business. The paddles fit the profile of being carved by nearby Maliseet artisans from Kingsclear First Nation.


Lot 15 is another Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) paddle of a different form and dimension. 

 Lot 15 - Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) Paddle
56.25 x 4.5 x 1 in — 142.9 x 11.4 x 2.5 cm
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto


The blade features an etching of a nature scene with birds nesting surrounded by a leafy border.
 Lot 15 - Blade Closeup
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto

The slightly stretched grip bears another decorative etching and is inscribed "W. Chestnut". The paddle shows evidence of some in-water use including a slightly worn tip but is in remarkable condition.
 Lot 15 - Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) Paddle
56.25 x 4.5 x 1 in — 142.9 x 11.4 x 2.5 cm
Image Courtesy of Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Toronto


These are absolutely fascinating specimens which rarely come up for auction. For more information and viewing of other available pieces, go to:


December 6th Update: Lot 14 Pair of paddles sold for $9500 CAD or approximately $6770 US (2 bids) with the Lot 15 William Chestnut paddle selling for $2200 CAD or approximately $1570 US (4 bids). Buyer's premium and sales tax in addition to the above.



Wednesday, July 17, 2024

Historic Paddle Photos: Nipigon Museum

 Historic Paddle Photos: Nipigon Museum


circa 1910 1978.1.1-Billy-Ross

Francis Hardy Nipigon Guides

Gapen-The-Nipigon-River


Muse Kenora 1897-Regattas

Muse Kenora circa 1910 1988.21.13-Bertha-Stone




Wednesday, May 22, 2024

Book Review: Mike Elliot's This Fancy Old Canoe

Another spectacular resource for canoe restoration has been created by Mike Elliot of Kettle River Canoes. This Fancy Old Canoe is Mike's second publication on the topic following his highly successful and well received first book from back in 2016. This Fancy Old Canoe is set to be released on Amazon on June 3rd, 2024. I was fortunate to receive an advanced copy to review and share with readers here.


Mike's well known Canoeguy's blog has been providing restoration tips online since 2009. His posts have been a valuable resource for folks who have wanted to tackle a repair on their own, especially for those intimidated by the job.  These posts formed the basis for his first book, This Old Canoe, which exclusively focused on wood-canvas construction. These included typical repairs such as replacing broken ribs and planking, splicing rib tops, dealing with rotted stem tips and of course, re-canvassing. 

Having covered these common types of damage and repair, Mike's new book tackles more difficult restoration challenges seen in other styles of canoe construction. As many of these styles are no longer being actively built and have been relegated to being viewed as vintage antiques, Mike appropriately refers to these classic hulls as "Fancy Canoes".   


In particular, the book discusses the various forms of all-wood construction, which rapidly evolved in the region of Peterborough, Ontario. These various "Peterborough" canoes did not have a waterproof canvas exterior but instead relied on precise wood joinery to create a water-tight hull.  This Fancy Old Canoe thoroughly describes how to repair and replace every component in these elegant designs.

With over 400 photos and more than 100 plans and illustrations, This Fancy Old Canoe helps to methodically direct the restoration process and provides a clear guidance to handling some of the more challenging woodworking tasks.


In addition to these all-wood hulls, Mike delves into the repair of other forms of wood-canvas construction that were not covered in his first book. Included are topics such as reverse engineering highly curved stem profiles, steam-bending short decks and rebuilding the long extended decks typically seen on fancy courting canoes. 


Further chapters cover the complex task of dealing with pocketed inwales commonly seen in B.N. Morris canoes as well as additional topics of wide outwales and handling restorations to sponson air chambers. The caning patterns for a trapezoidal seat from a 1905 Rushton Indian Girl is also included as are plans for a wood slat Peterborough portable canoe chair. Even repairs to sailing rigs and floor systems are thoughtfully discussed along with a chapter on applying fancy hand-painted decorations to a hull.


As in his first book, This Fancy Old Canoe concludes with a series of handy schematics for the key components of a variety of historic canoe models. The plans include information on the Old Town Otca,  Thomson Brothers Ranger, Rushton Indian Girl, Peterborough Lake Queen, and a Willits Brothers double cedar hull.  

Collectors of antique canoes as well as folks interested in appreciating the elegant complexity of these watercraft will no doubt appreciate the fine photography and explanations. Those who wish to tackle getting an heirloom canoe back on the water will find these two books are wonderful resources to help overcome challenges and achieve success in their canoe restoration project.

This Fancy Old Canoe: A Comprehensive Guide To Restoring Antique Canoes will be available on Amazon starting on June 3, 2024.

This Fancy Old Canoe: A Comprehensive Guide to Restoring Antique Canoes
8.5″ x 11″ paperback
248 pages
more than 400 photographs
more than 100 plans and illustrations
$25.95 USD ($34.95 CAD)




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